Fair to the Last Drop?

< class="date">October 22, 2006

Dean’s Beans, a coffee company in the rolling woods of Orange, north of the Quabbin Reservoir, comes across like a hyperactive little international development organization: The company shares profits with farmers and funds reforestation initiatives, health programs, and women’s loan projects from Nicaragua to Ethiopia. Its 10 employees enjoy profit sharing and full retirement plans and the company contributes to programs for the disabled and the homeless across the state.

But first and foremost, Dean’s Beans sells only coffee that has been bought directly from family farmers according to internationally-recognized “fair trade” practices. (more…)

Posted in Boston Globe, Newspapers

Affordable San Francisco

Oct 15, 2006

AS befits a city that is both a major tourist and business destination, and one that draws lots of families in for a visit — 65 percent of its population was born outside California — San Francisco’s range of hotels is at once profuse and varied. The city has more than 32,000 hotel rooms, ranging from $12,500-dollar-a-night suites that are more like mansions to bedbug-infested S.R.O.’s that have always held a certain Bukowskian charm better read about than experienced.

While it’s easy to come here and spend $60 for a cellblock out by the airport, it’s also totally unnecessary: with a little planning, you can find a hotel that is affordable yet also embodies the eclectic charm that has always been San Francisco’s appeal. (more…)

Posted in New York Times, Newspapers

For Meals Under $25, Go Where the Tourists Don’t

Oct 15, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO is justifiably famous for the variety and the excellence of its restaurants. But as a visitor, particularly one looking for both a great meal and a good deal, it’s hard to avoid the feeling that you’ve somehow not quite found what you’re looking for. The tourist traps near Fisherman’s Wharf and most of the dizzying array of restaurants in visitor-heavy areas like North Beach rely on a stream of out-of-towners, most of whom will never come again. Instead, head for San Francisco’s eclectic neighborhoods, where restaurants have to compete for repeat customers in one of the country’s most restaurant-savvy cities.

Read it on the NYT site…

Posted in New York Times, Newspapers